A five-day, National Conference on Pulmonary Diseases (Napcon) is being organized by the Indian Chest Society (ICS) and National College of Chest Physicians Indian NCCP (I) in association with American Thoracic Society (ATS) from 7th to 11th November, 2001 at Hotel Taj in Mumbai. In the Conference, about eight hundred physicians are expected to participate from all over the world.

The Conference will be mainly focusing on topics like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a major cause of chronic morbidity and mortality throughout the world, to increase awareness of COPD among health professionals and public health authorities and the general public, and improvisation in prevention and management through concerted worldwide effort.

While COPD has been recognized for many years, public health officials are concerned about the recent and continuing increases in its prevalence and mortality, which are due in large part of the increasing use of tobacco products worldwide and the changing age structure of population in developing countries. The global initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease offers a framework for management of COPD that can be adapted to local health care systems and resources. Educational tools, such as laminated cards or computer - based learning programmes, can be prepared that are tailored to these systems and resources.

The global initiative for Chronic Lung Disease Programme is conducted in collaboration with the US National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute and World Health Organization.

The programme known as "Gold" will be launched for India during the Napcon conference through Gold workshop to increase awareness of COPD and to improve its prevention.

The vital points that will be presented at the Conference are asthma diagnosis, asthma treatment, tuberculosis and treatment of pediatric pulmonary diseases, sleep disorders, breathing, air pollution and environment, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, and ICS ovation.